Wings
by Himitsu no Tokumei
Summary: Zed returns to Tempura. Noa is waiting to undergo an operation to save his life. Elmeda attacks Task, who is allied with Tempura. And somewhere along the line, Zed admits his feelings to Noa, and has to inform everyone of his condition. Read opening bit.
1. Chapter 1: To the Place Where the Wind

Okay, I have 6 chapters planned for this one. It shouldn't take me too long, but I have only two weeks lift of college (decided to quit after first term. Turns out I'm not a college girl, not enough self-discipline for it...) so it will be at least that long before I post up chapter 2. I had to start this because I finally finished the anime.

In my opinion, this anime doesn't get enough publicity. It is amazing, and deserves to be seen as much. I have recommended it to several friends, so hopefully it will spread around soon.

Because there are a few different versions of the characters' names, I will list the ones I used:  
Zed (obviously...)  
Noa  
Roia  
Jiko (also called Zico, personally I like Jiji better both because it is like a play on his name and because it means "old man.")  
Elmeda  
Sebastion (does he even have another name?)  
Robes (same as above. Though, I am too lazy to put the accent mark above his name every time I type it...)

**Warnings: **Shounen Ai (yes, this is a ZedxNoa pairing), spoilers for those who have not seen all the episodes. So, if you haven't seen the entire anime don't read, unless you don't mind spoilers, then go ahead and read. If you don't like male x male pairings, don't read either, and if you do, don't flame it. I hate that.

**I do not own Kiba :'(**

* * *

**Chapter 1: To the Place Where the Wind Blows**

His mystic blue eyes stared at the dawn light, white wings open fully to glide on the soft air currents. How long had it been now, since he had left that world? Where was he now? It wasn't Calm, or Tempura, or Neotopia.

It wasn't with Noa.

Zed found that as the days went by, one at a time, the ache to just _see_ his best friend again grew larger and larger, threatening to burst from his chest.

But he had chosen this. _He_ had decided to fuse with Amil Gaoul, not Noa. _He_ had decided to leave, not Noa. _He_ had decided he should never return.

_Three years,_ the spirit inside him answered, breaking Zed free from his brooding thoughts.

"Come again?" the white-haired male asked, not even bother to look around, having long since gotten used to Amil's comments.

_It has been three years since you left,_ it specified, answering his unspoken question.

"You've been keeping track?" Zed asked, flapping his Amil Gaoul-given wings rapidly to safely land on a roof top before hiding them. As he used to in the old days—the old days being back when he had originally left and had yet to become used to Amil Gaoul talking to him—the teenager looked over his shoulder as if _looking_ at the speaker.

_Yes,_ Amil replied.

"Why?" The question held a great deal of confusion. What did the time matter to Amil? Was he counting down his years left alive? Did he regret giving up that eternal life to prevent Tasker from being resurrected again?

_I knew you would ask, eventually,_ came the cool reply. Amil Gaoul's personality had not shown through well as a spirit, but now that he was able to freely talk, it showed through just how arrogant he could be. _You are only human, and I know I am not enough company for you alone. You should go back to see them, even if you only view from afar._ And yet he could also be quite kind. _Although we both know you won't be able to._ Scratch that. A smug voice like that can't be kind!

Still, Zed turned to face away from the sun, looking up at the awakening sky. "Three years…? That means I'm 18 now. Has it really been that long?" Summoning his wings again, the boy-turned-angel took to the skies, and the glowing green portal that awaited him.

* * *

His dark eyes stared at the dawn light, weak arms resting on the arms of his wheelchair. How long had he been in it now? How much longer would he be? A month? A year? Ten years? Would he even live long enough to be out of it?

Would he live long enough to see Zed?

His mind wandered to the missing boy constantly now-a-days. He wished to just _see_ his best friend again, even if it was only from a distance.

But Zed had chosen to leave. Zed had chosen to follow Amil Gaoul through that portal. Zed had decided to not come back yet…

And Noa knew there was nothing he could do about it, except for wait.

"It's been three years now," a female voice said sadly, the same female that always pushed his wheelchair and used her healing shard to prolong his life.

"Yeah," Noa agreed, just as sad, looking out over Tempura from the top of that hill the girl said that Zed used to always do so from. "Three years since he left."

Roia glanced down at him, his somber mood reflected in her sorrowful eyes. She knew Noa missed Zed more than she did. "Three years since all that trouble went on," she stated. "Three years that you've been in this wheelchair."

"Yeah," Noa agreed again, ever complacent.

"Ah!" Roia suddenly exclaimed, startling the other teenager into looking up at her. "Ginga sent a message over," she cheered. "They are closer than he had expected. He said it should only be a couple more weeks, a month at most, before it should be ready."

His dark eyes lit up at that. "You mean that-" he began to ask before she cut him off.

"Yep! That means I was right! I told you so!" she jeered good naturedly, giggling quietly and receiving a soft chuckle from the dark-haired male. A soft chuckle that turned into quiet coughs as his body rejected the enjoyment, or any sharp movement, for that matter. "Ah, I'm sorry!" Roia profusely apologized, trying to bow while still retaining her grip on the wheelchair handles.

"Don't worry about it, Roia," Noa said kindly once the coughs subsided. "Your only intention was to help lift my mood a bit. It helped, but I don't think…" He left the sentence open-ended, knowing quite well that Roia understood perfectly. It was no mystery to the girl where her companions affections lay, and they definitely weren't on her.

No, those affections flew off with Zed.

* * *

The winds gently blew his snowy hair, hair that he had kept in its short, spiky array. The clearing was the same one, the breeze was the same one, the windmill was the same one, but the situation was different. He knew this place now. And Jiko wasn't here fighting with a Jimoto soldier. Jiko wasn't even here at all, any more.

The thought pained him. He had caused Jiko's death by losing to Tasker's will those three years ago.

_There isn't anything you can do about that now,_ Amil stated, always the sensible one. _Besides, don't you think Jiko would have been happy to die the way he did, fighting against what he once thought he wanted? He was able to do something useful in the end, that is sure to have made him happy, especially after what happened with your mother._

"Yeah, I guess so," Zed sighed, having heard that argument a hundred times before and still finding no valid contradiction for it. Looking around the clearing with his almost trance-like blue eyes, Zed brought his shard caster hand to his shoulder blade.

_What are you doing?_ Amil asked, worried as he felt the barrier between his power and Zed erect.

"Not yet," the savior replied. "I don't want them to see just yet. And if possible, I don't want them to see at all…" He could feel the key spirit sympathize with him, though he also felt the strong disagreement with his decision. "If you don't like it, then take control. I know you can quite easily.

_No,_ Amil replied. _I have lived my fill of lifetimes. You have experienced barely eighteen years. This is your life to live, and I have had enough life to feel no regret with dying. I have seen enough war to be happy to find a way to stop it._

Zed couldn't help but smile at that, and how much alike they sounded. The only difference being, as Amil Gaoul said, he had less than a score of years, while the spirit had lifetimes' worth of fighting and killing.

His now yellow-brown eyes gazed ahead of him as he made his way through the nest of trees. It wasn't dark and scary, but calm and peaceful, and he found himself believing he could simply live in this forest, away from everyone and everything else.

"Who goes there!" a voice called out.

But he wasn't alone, and he wouldn't be alone here. And the spirit-boy did not believe he could be near people for any given amount of time anymore. "Stand down," he said as kindly as he could, finding his voice strange and unfamiliar, despite using it with the voice inside his head. It had, after all, deepened a bit as he grew, and gained a cold edge he could discard from the months and months of loneliness.

"State your name!" the shard caster guard commanded, Tempuran spear angled towards Zed's throat. "I will only ask one more time! State yo-" He was cut off.

"Zed," the white-haired male replied. "My name is Zed."

He could see the guard physically stiffen at that, and look him over carefully. "N-not possible…" he stuttered a bit, tip of his spear disturbing the dirt. "It-it really is you, isn't it, Zed?"

"Ah," Zed replied, his typical replacement for 'yeah.'

"Please, come with me!" he practically shouted in hysterics, seeming quite flustered and determined to get the snow-haired teen to follow him. Zed didn't try to get away as the man grabbed his wrist and dragged him through the forest, towards where he very well knew that Miki and Roia and Robes and Sebastian would be.

But not Jiko.

Jiko was dead.

* * *

Several people seemed to recognize him as he was pulled through the village. Gasps and whispers were shared and spread, making his arrival precede him. Sebastian was waiting at the door to the Tempuran "palace," looking quite annoyed and unbelieving in the rumor. His characteristic frown caused his eyebrows to knit together and create deep lines on his forehead, his hands clasped behind his back in annoyance. He had heard things like this before, but not in a couple years. This was just going to be…

"Zed…?" he breathed, barely audible as the male walked up to stand just a few feet in front of him.

"Ah," Zed replied, not looking at Sebastian, or anything in particular. His gaze was far away, trying to figure out what had possessed him to step foot in this place again.

A somber tone crept into the elder's rarely opened eyes, noticing the distinct change in the boy's demeanor. His travels, his time away, had hit him hard. "Come, you must be hungry," Sebastian said, motioning towards the structure behind him with one arm.

"Ah," Zed agreed, lacking his usual luster.

This did not please the older man. This Zed was not the one he saw leave to go face Task and Tasker. This Zed was half-dead inside and searching for the half that was alive. "There are a lot of people who have missed you. I will bring you to see them. I'm sure you've missed them too." He received no answer with this.

Grumbling silently, Sebastian gently knocked on the door. "Come in," came Roia's soft voice, it too worn down over the years. For not the first time, Sebastian found himself hating the key spirits that could cause so much pain to children as young as them.

Her back was turned to the door, allowing Noa to gaze out the large window, and she didn't turn around until she heard the distinct _click!_ of the door closing. Then she froze, breath caught in her throat.

"Roia, what is it?" Noa's soft voice asked, the raven-haired male trying to turn his head enough to look passed her.

The girl noticed that Zed flinched slightly at his best friend's voice, looking up from the floor but looking passed her to the wheelchair.

"Zed?" she asked slowly, cautiously. Noa found his voice stuck in his throat, that single word he had been waiting what seemed like forever to hear temporarily shutting down his brain. "Is that really you, Zed?"

He gave a slight nod, not much, but enough to be noticeable to the girl watching. Said girl quickly turned back towards the window, gripping the handles of Noa's wheelchair and turning him to face the snowy-haired male.

"Zed…" Noa whispered once he found his voice. "You came back…"

"Ah," he replied, trying unsuccessfully to smile. It had been so long, he had forgotten how. "I came back…"

* * *

I like how I did this one! It seems (to me, at least) different from my usual writing style, but I still think it's good. Also a note, no, Zed is _not_ an angel, that is just used to describe what he looks like. Spirit-boy represents how he is now half-spirit half-human. And trance-like blue eyes was the best way I could think up to describe Amil Gaoul's eyes on Zed. It did look like Zed was kind of in a trance.

Hope you enjoyed it, all two of you who will probably read this.


	2. Chapter 2: The Prayer that Doesn't Die

Okay, first thing's first. I meant to get this out _two weeks ago_ but I didn't, and I am very sorry to those who have been waiting for it. The reason I didn't? That is, quite simply, because I wanted to post in all five of my fanfictions at once this one time as a "I'm out of college and not going back at this moment, yay!" kind of thing. The problem? I had to write in all five of them first. I had four done for the last week, and finally got the fifth one done! So, you can blame **The Assassin and the Clown** on the delay. At this point, I will tell you I am still writing this, but I will not guarentee specific update days. I am not giving them up (I love my fanfictions ana my fans), but ti could be two months or two days between updates.

I stated in the previous chapter I think, at least) that I have a total of six chapters planned for this. That could be shortened to five if I can't get enough content for one of the chapters. Either way, they storyline won't change.

Something else I thought I would mention, incase no one has realized, the chapter titles are actually episode titles (or at least the translations of them that were on the episodes I watched). I though it added a nice touch to it.

Also, I have another, really, _really_ messed up idea for a fanfiction of this pairing as well. It is one I conceived when I had, like, four episodes left to watch, so I finished it my own way since I couldn't watch the episodes yet. As such, it doesn't follow the ending for the actual series. if you have watched the series and want to hear what it would be about, I will not start writing it until I get the okay from others. I am kind of apprehensive about it and want some feedback. Please PM me if you would like to hear more about it, or just to chat with me, I really don't mind. I like talking to people.

Lastly, I would like to thank **LarielAris**,** Rinoa Lunar**,** Nakrota**,** Avenged Veralin**,** tsuchikin901**,** Unwritten-Destiny**, and the other 31 people who have read this story so far. IT makes me very happy to see how many people like this since I was expecting... oh... maybe ten people to actually look at it. It makes me very happy.

**I do not own Kiba :'(**

* * *

**Chapter 2: The Prayer that Doesn't Die Out**

The three of them sat around a small table, five mugs of some warm liquid, based on the fact all five were steaming, placed on the flat, even surface. An awkward silence fell over them as they waited for the rest of the group to assemble, the only female shifting nervously in her chair. Zed stared down at the cup in his hands, watching almost amusedly at the slight ripples caused by the evaporating water. The final companion, Noa, watched Zed with intense interest, as if he was trying to milk the other male's story out through just his actions.

A loud banging announced the arrival of the obnoxious one, and Roia didn't even start to get up, for she knew Robes would open the door for himself. "Roia!" the rich kid sing-songed, stepping in dramatically. A very embarrassed (at his companion's idiocy) Miki stepped in behind him, shaking his head and not looking where he was going so he walked right into Robes.

"Hey, Robes, Miki," Roia answered, and would have giggled at the smaller boy's expression had the air not been so thick in the room.

Robes' eyes analyzed the white-haired teenager, who had looked up from his mug of hot chocolate to glare in annoyance at the overly-loud man. As shock wore off, excitement took over the blonde, and he launched himself at the table. "Zed! I was wondering when you were going to come back!" he yelled, startling Miki and pretty much everyone else in the room. Everyone else except for Zed, who merely held a hand up to prevent the taller male from hugging him. "Come on! Let's go out un the courtyard _right now_ and see which of us in the better shard caster!"

"No," Zed said coldly, pushing slightly so Robes was no longer leaning on his hand and picking up his mug to take a sip. "Still too hot… Be sure to blow on it, Noa," he said, completely ignoring Robes.

"What do you mean, 'no'?" Robes huffed, taking his own seat. By this time, Miki had recovered and rushed over the only seat left, between Robes and Zed. The later was about to speak when Robes spoke up again, "Oh, I get it, you are waiting until Joust so we can have a _real_ fight, right?"

"No," Zed replied again, taking another sip from his mug and grabbing Noa's when he almost dropped it. "I said blow on it, Noa," Zed reiterated, gently blowing on the hot liquid for his best friend, who just grinned sheepishly.

"I can do so myself, Zed," Noa responded, taking his cup back.

"You weren't so I was doing so for you," Zed said.

"How long have they been like this?" Robes whispered in Roia's ear.

"Since Zed realized Noa couldn't get out of that wheelchair," Roia replied, equally quiet.

Zed took another look at his best friend, guilt welling up once again. Noa was thinner than he should be, and his arms shook as he tried to use them. According to Roia, Noa became wheelchair-bound not too long after he vanished. The snowy-haired male could not help but take some responsibility himself, for he knew of Noa's condition and didn't do anything to try and stop it. Who knew how much longer the 18-year-old had left.

"You don't need to look so down," the ravenette chuckled lightly, patting his friend's shoulder. "It was only a slight burn, nothing major." When he got no reaction from Zed, Noa's visage sombered. "Zed, I'm alright. Don't worry about this."

Deep red-brown met yellow brown for a second, before the later looked away, ashamed. "I should have stopped you back then, way back then in Task, before all this mess happened," Zed stated, speaking of when Kisu was still alive, the first instant when Zed realized Noa was in this world as well.

"I don't think I'd have let you stop me," Noa remarked, smiling a little. His plan of it transferring to his obviously dejected friend failed. "Besides, cheer up! I won't have to worry for much longer!"

To say Zed's expression was fearful would be an understatement. Terrified wouldn't even cut it. "Don't tell me that-" he started, a tear he had long since thought himself unable to shed forming in his eye.

"No, no, nothing like that," Noa reassured, noticing what track his white-haired friend's mind was on. "Ginga has been working on a way to cure me, and he said that it will only be a few more weeks, a month at most, before I am out of this wheelchair!"

Zed's eyes lit up a bit at that, his features softening. For a slit second, so short a time frame that only Roia saw it, he smiled. Then the one tear slipped from his eye and his expression turned to confusion, a hand reaching up to dab the moisture onto his fingers. "Zed, are you alright?" Miki asked, finally speaking up.

"I didn't think… I could cry anymore…" he stated, a second tear leaving a trail on the other cheek.

Gods it felt good to be _home_.

* * *

Oh the wonders Ginga had done to Ulbacus! Since most of the structure had been destroyed by Amil Gaoul, he had to reconstruct most of it. And it had _a lot_ of improvements. From stronger, heat resistant shields to indoor greenhouses, the entire functionality of the place had increased. "We could literally lock over a thousand people in here and be self-sufficient!" Ginga was explaining as he led then through the hallways. "You know, Zed, it's good to see you again. Thought I'd never see you again after you vanished with Ami Gaoul. What have you been up to?" the green-haired man asked, quite interested in his friend's travels.

"Not much," Zed replied, tone even, receiving a frown from the Taskan.

He was about to ask more, when Noa placed a hand on his arm, shaking his head. "That's all any of us will get from him," the ravenette said. "Including me, and he talks more… expressively to me. Hey, why don't you show him to one of the greenhouses? Would you like that, Zed?"

The reclusive savior turned to better hear his friend. "Would I like what?" he asked, a very slight variance in his pitch as the words fell off his tongue.

"Do you want to see the greenhouses? I saw one last time I came here," he smiled, again not successful in infecting Zed with one. Since that time he heard Noa would be able to recover, he had not smiled (even though only Roia realized he had).

Nodding, he responded with, "Yeah, I think I'd like that." Dumbfounded at Zed's lack of life, Ginga turned at the next corridor to head to their new destination. "When is your operation?" Zed asked, concern clear in his voice.

"In just under two hours, west wing," Noa answered. "Look, everything will go alright, you can trust Ginga."

"Do you even know what they are going to do?" Zed asked, eyes, for once, intense with emotion.

Noa looked away, though the snowy-haired male couldn't tell if it was because he did know, or because he didn't.

"I will send someone to come get you fifteen minutes before Noa's operation, okay?" Ginga asked as he was about to close the greenhouse door.

"Ah," the spirit-boy replied, not even turning to look at the speaker.

Huffing, the new Ulbacan leader slammed the door closed. "Can he at least _try_ to show some emotion?" Ginga fumed as they headed away from the infuriating male.

"He is," Noa told him, causing everyone to stop and look at him. "He just doesn't remember how. A lot must have happened in these last three years."

Zed scanned over the scene before him. _This place really is self-sufficient,_ Amil commented, as he did when Zed was alone. The spirit had the decency to at least remain silent when he could be discovered, which Zed was thankful for.

The space was huge, much larger than Zed though possible for the size of the building he was in. Live stalk grazed in a fenced pasture that took up about half the enclosure. Half of the remaining space was a vegetable garden, and the rest held fruit trees, over a hundred, by the looks of it. Passing under the branches, Zed looked up to see an assortment of apples, and pears, and plums, and peaches… _The Ulbacans sure eat well,_ Amil Gaoul commented, trying to strike up a conversation with his quiet companion.

"Ah," was all the reply he got. Yellow-brown eyes focused on something in the back corner, close to the tinted glass that let light in but hid the occupants from outside eyes. Glass that could also withstand extreme storms.

The scraggly tree didn't seem like much, with just a few dark brown branches that held no life. Green had long since left the pathetic thing, leaving it naked and barren. And yet out of all the other, healthy trees Zed could have been drawn to, he headed straight for that one. "Calm…" he said as an explanation, knowing that Amil would question him for his direction.

The spirit remained quiet while his host leaped onto the branch, staring out the glass before sitting down and falling backwards, so he hung by his knees and looked back through the healthy grove.

"_What exactly is wrong with Noa?" he asked Ginga when he finally got a moment alone with the man. Ginga had come to pick them up for Noa's operation, and like _hell_ was Zed going to be left behind._

_The green-haired male turned to regard his companion, purple meeting yellow-brown. "His spinal cord is degenerating at a rapid rate. It seems that the impulses going through it are actually a poison to it, causing it die. That is why he was told to not be too active, for the more he moved the more signals were sent."_

"_You said you had a cure for him, what is it?" the savior asked, completely lacking emotion, except for the underlying tone of fear in his eyes._

What exactly is going on between those two?_ Ginga couldn't help but wonder. "We are going to have to remove his entire nervous system, except for his brain, and replace it with mechanics."_

_He could see Zed pale at that notion. "But isn't that dangerous!" Zed yelled, fear lacing into his every thought._

"_Extremely," Ginga replied, not showing how phased he was by the sudden outburst. "In truth, the chances of success are really low, around 5% since the nervous system controls everything, including heartbeat and breathing."_

"_And you are still going to try it!" Zed growled, grabbing the front of Ginga's shirt and yanking to heavier male off his feet to hang a good six inches in the air._

_Ginga's surprise increased when he saw the distinct ring of mystic blue creep around his companion's pupils. He barely caught himself when Zed suddenly let him go. The white-haired teenager noticed the barrier breaking and quickly reinforced it, hoping Ginga wouldn't ask, if he even saw anything._

"_If you would let me finish, I was going to say, the success rate would be just a 5% chance, if we had done so several months ago when we finally realized what the problem was. We know now how to compensate for the lack of spinal signals. Instead, while we are operating, a system of machines will keep Noa's vital functions stable, raising the success rate to around 60-65%. There is still a chance something could go wrong, but if we don't operate within the next three months it will be too late to save him. Without this procedure, I'd give him six months, tops."_

_Zed didn't like the fact that the odds weren't 100%, but it was better than the previous 5. Nodding, he looked up to see the others approaching and left to go stand by Noa._

Ginga was quite surprised at Zed's lack of emotion after their little encounter. "Fifteen minutes… could you go get Zed, please?" he asked one of his assistants. The young man ran off instantly, happy to be of some help since there was nothing he could do during the operation except sit back and watch. "Don't worry, Zed. I promise he is in good hands," Ginga whispered, chuckling at the revelation he had not five minutes after the rest of the group had found them.

Zed was in love with Noa.

* * *

Yay! In truth, the succes rate would probably have been 0, because they had to remove and replace all the nerves, but I'm giving their technology some credit, and I'm giving it more for they have developed stuff _just_ to cure Noa. I will not write the opperation scenes (yes, there will be two), because It will probably completely ruin this fic if I do with how _bad_ I would write them.

Enjoy the chapter!


	3. Chapter 3: Eternal Bond

I hope this one turned out okay, seeing as to how ther is a lot of talking so I was running out of ways to word things.

I sure got this up fast, probably because I know I only have a few chapters for a it and I want to quickly get it done for those who are reading it. So much more motivational when you have only three or four chapters that when you have ten or twenty, ne?

A couple notes:  
1) I have decidec to call Noa and Zed both 'man' and 'teen' because they are eighteen and so it is kind of hard to figure out which one would suite them better.  
2) I mention how Noa is the other savior-child in this, and this has to do with the fact that he technically _was_ a savior, just not _the_ savior, and his actions did help save the world. I call them savior-child as well as savior because in truth they were still simply children at the time.  
3) In the third section where it is talking about 'the beast inside Zed,' that is entirely metaphorical.

I was kind of 'meh' about this chapter in the beginning because of how I was writing it (stupid long conversatins), but I think I finished it quite nicely. Hope you enjoy it.

**I do not own Kiba :'(**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Eternal Bond**

Sleep threatened to overtake him; fear nipped at his heels; sadness gripped his heart like death. How long had they been in there now, while all he could do was watch through the clear barrier, helpless? Had it been only hours? It felt more like days. How many times had they almost lost him? Three? Four? He couldn't remember. How much blood had to be replaced by now? The floor looked like a slippery web of red, so it had to be a lot. Assistants were constantly mopping up the mess, which had luckily been stemmed in the last couple hours. Or was it merely half an hour? Time meshed together here.

A dark skinned man wearing a surgeon's robe walked in through the automatic door, but Zed paid him no heed. His golden eyes meticulously watched the scene below, as the swabs and gauze and used thread and needles were collected, and where Noa was cautiously moved onto a wheeled bed to be moved. The ravenette's chest held the steady rise and fall of restful breathing, the warm air from his lungs causing condensation to form on the inside of his breathing mask.

"He is out of immediate danger, Zed," Ginga said, leaning tiredly against a consol. Weariness assaulted him just as it did his friend, who only turned to greet him once Noa was wheeled out of the operating room. "We will have to watch him closely, though, for incase he loses stability."

"He won't," Zed said confidently, despite the obvious sleep deprivation in his voice. "Noa is stronger than that."

Both stood in silence for a minute, both sagging more and more as adrenaline and anxiety ebbed away. "It took longer than we expected," Ginga admitted. "I had estimated somewhere between twenty-four and thirty hours, we were approaching forty when we finally finished. Several of us had to switch out."

Sharing a yawn, Zed staggered uneasily to the green-haired man. Placing an unsteady hand on the Taskan's shoulder, he said, "You should go lie down. You must be dead on your feet."

"What about you?" Ginga asked the back of the departing savior.

"I'm going to stay by Noa's side, even if I end up falling asleep before he wakes," Zed answered, stopping just long enough to glance over his shoulder.

Giving a small, curt nod, Ginga sent the snowy-haired male on his way, collapsing into a chair himself. As much as sleep pulled at his senses, he had one last thing to do…

Stumbling through the door, Zed met the floor before Noa's bed. Weights pulled him eyelids down, coaxing him to forget about everything except sleep's dark embrace. _Are you planning on staying on the floor?_ an obnoxious, cocky voice asked. It was enough to give him strength to crawl over to the bed. Sitting up enough that his arms and head were on the comfy surface, not even Amil Gaoul could wake him this time.

The light hurt his eyes at first, and he defensively rubbed him palms into them to block it out. "Hey, he's up!" a chipper voice sounded, one he knew could only belong to the Taskan-Tempuran girl. Taking a moment to blink and adjust to the harsh light, the next thing Zed notice was he was lying on his back.

* * *

"A bed?" he asked, sitting up to look around the small room he had been given. Before anyone could answer, he went off again. "Where's Noa? What's his condition?"

"Calm down, Zed," the blonde Joust Champion sighed, giving his signature shrug before continuing. "Noa is doing just fine. Woke up around an hour ago. Of course, we had moved you to here by then because no one knew exactly when you were going to wake. It's been almost… sixteen hours now. If I'm correct, you hadn't been getting much sleep lately anyway, so this was probably really good for you."

"That doesn't matter," Zed growled, swinging his legs over the side of the bed and standing before Roia could stop him. He tottered for a second, eyes unfocused, before he steadied, heading right between the congregation in his room to the door. Opening it, he suddenly realized he didn't know where he was, or how to get to his best friend's room.

"Go to your right and it's the third door on the left," he heard from behind him, and giving only a slight nod in reply, took off.

"Aaah, what has gotten into our Zed," came the bordering-on-whiney voice of Robes.

"We just can't stand between those two," Roia smiled, walking the few steps over to Robes' side. The tall male leisurely draped his arm across her shoulders, subtly pulling her closer until she was leaning against his chest.

"Nope, our kids are all grown up now," he joked back, grinning from ear to ear.

"What is with this "our kids" stuff? I'm their age, you know," Roia shot back, just a slight hint of irritation in her tone.

"We are the ones who took care of them, right?" Robes replied with a question.

"Yeah, I guess," the girl said back, shaking her head slightly.

Quietly opening the door, golden-brown eyes peered through the gap before the young man stepped through. "Noa, how are you feeling?" he asked quietly, slowly making his way over to the bed. The raven-haired man sitting up on it, turned to him with a smile, eyes soft.

"I'm feeling a lot better now," Noa replied. "Still in pain, but that's because of the surgery, and should go away in a couple months. I can't move my legs, though," he said sadly, looking forlorn at the useless appendages. "Ginga said it's because they have been inactive too long. The muscles have broken down too much for therapy to recover them."

Not knowing what else to do, the snowy-haired male said softly next to his friend, placing a cool hand over the paler male's warm one. Words failed him, and all Zed could do was simply remain in Noa's presence, and hope that did something to help.

"Don't worry about it so much, Zed," the ravenette smiled, though Zed could find no reason to smile. "Ginga already came in and spoke to me over my options. I could leave it like it is, or I could undergo another operation, one he himself had gone through."

"What do you mean? What exactly in is it that you are planning on doing?" the savior-child asked, concern lacing his words.

"Nothing major. It would entail replacing all the muscles in my legs with mechanics, just like they did with my spine and the major nerves running off from it. This one is much simpler, though," Noa assured, and could clearly see the relief on the other male's face.

Letting a moment of silence pass, Zed finally spoke up again, "So when is this next operation, then?"

"It's been set for a couple weeks from now. I'm no longer in danger from my previous trip to the operating room, but it could cause complications if we don't let my body heal first," Noa replied. A sweet smile touched his legs as he gripped Zed's shoulder, lowering him to the bed. "I'm still kind of tired," Noa admitted, lying next to his friend. "So let's just… lay for a bit."

Watching the man he had fallen in love with fall asleep, not even stoic Zed could keep all the color from rising to his face. Cheeks tinted a slight pink, the boy drifted off next to the other savior-child.

* * *

One thing Zed found convenient about traveling light was the lack of items to pack for the trip. He had already made up his mind, back when he saw Noa exiting that emergency room. No, maybe ii was farther back than that, like when he was hanging from that tree that reminded him so much of the one back 'home' in Calm. Or possibly it was before he even set foot in the forest to begin with, before he landed after impulsively returning to Tempura.

Zed had already decided he could not stay.

As far as he saw, there was no longer a place for him in this world. He, Zed, had friends here, like Noa and Roia and Robes, as well as family, such as the Seekers which he was technically a part of. But he, Amil Gaoul, no longer belonged in this world. His presence alone could bring unbalance and destruction, the only flaw in his foolproof plan. By fusing with Amil Gaoul, and in essence becoming Amil Gaoul himself, Zed prevented the six key spirits from being gathered outside his body. But they could still be gathered within.

He did not want to chance such an event taking place, and so he decided to leave. His heart rebelled against the notion, so he sated it with the logical explanations of 'he had only come to make sure everyone was safe' and 'Noa was better now,' but that did not halt the stirrings. His emotions fought back like a caged beast, tearing at anything that came within reach with its menacing claws, fangs gnawing relentlessly at the adamantine bars, and slowly winning. Words flitted through his head in Amil's voice, taunting the beast and enraging it farther, driving it made until it bloodied it gums and paws from desperation, and still fought on. His pitiful excuses were losing their effect, changing from the deadly bullets they used to be into harmless daisies, falling around the monster that could be called 'humanity' to be torn to shreds and scattered on the wind that once dominated his soul.

Sitting on the bed in the room he had shared the last couple nights with Noa, the white-haired savoir cringed when he heard the sickening _crunch!_ of teeth breaking in the mouth of his emotions. Fragments falling onto the scored floor, he could not deny that the damage was already done. How many bars had been snapped by those powerful jaws? How many times had he attempted to pacify the beast, only to find the creature immune to the tranquilizing fluid? Now he could almost see it clawing at the ground, half its body pulled through the demolished bars. The last sensible part of his mind told him to leave now, gather up his coat and open the portal and be gone before Noa had the chance to return and finish freeing the beast.

The internal battle made him move sluggishly slow, or maybe he wasn't moving at all. That had to be the case, for he was still in the same spot when that metal door swung open to reveal the ravenette, walking on his own again after three years. He seemed to know immediately what was going on, for the next second he was running across the room and placing firm hands on his friend's tanned shoulders. "You're not leaving again, are you?" he said quickly, afraid the man in front of him might vanish any second. "You can't leave! You just got back. And I just got better, why would you want to leave now?"

"I can't stay, Noa," Zed shot back, though no hate or anger was present in the words. If anything, they seemed almost sad, or _pained._ "I shouldn't have come back in the first place!"

"Why, Zed?" the other shouted back, the same emotion leaking into his voice. "Why can't you stay?" His only response was to look away, shame or guilt outlining his features. "Answer me, Zed!"

"I can't!" the shorter male yelled, the beginnings of tears forming in his eyes. Three years of keeping in his pain was finally culminating in that moment, and there was nothing he could do to prevent the dam from breaking. "It's not something I want to talk about, Noa! I'm not the save person I was before!"

Words, maybe laced with anger or frustration, was what he expected in return, not the warm embrace of arms enclosing him, pulling him closer until his face was nearly buried in the shoulder of his more feminine companion (not that it was Noa's fault, he was just built lighter and had to refrain from vigorous activities because of his illness). "It doesn't matter, Zed. It doesn't matter how much you've changed, for the only important thing is that you're alive. You are always welcome here. So please don't leave again. You're the most important person to me."

_Most… important…_ his mind repeated, going over the words and interpreting ever meaning to them. Twin trails ran from the corners of his eyes to his chin, the emotions inside him fearing he meant 'only as a friend' and being torn by their own claws because of that.

"What I'm trying to say is, I love you Zed," Noa continued, unsuccessfully masking his apprehension. "As in love you, love you." It was hard for him, waiting there in those seconds of silence for the answer he wasn't sure was even going to come. With all they had been through at this point, Noa found it stupid to continue playing that fated game of poker and just threw all his cards down for Zed to see. Now all he needed was Zed's response…

Shocked yellow-brown eyes looked up at him, the words written in them more than the answer he needed. "Noa, I-" he didn't get to finish as a pair of lips descended to softly mesh with his own. It was short and chaste, but enough for that moment. Knowing Zed wouldn't be able to speak for a while, Noa placed a hand on the back of his snowy-haired friend's head and pulled him.

And let him cry.

* * *

This very end part seems kind of cliched to me, and sorry if it seems that way to you too. And the point at the end is that Noa lets Zed sort through his emotions that he ahs kept cooped up over the last three years, that is why Zed won't be speaking for a while, not because Noa blew his mind away with that tiny peck of a kiss. Zed has to work through the mess he has left himself with, so Noa is comforting his now-boyfriend as he's doing that.

Love you all!


	4. Chapter 4: Prologue to the Battle

I was able to get enough content for this chapter, so there will be two more after this.

Don't know if I mentioned this before, but there is at least one more name that I will tell you which version I used:  
Mirette (also called Mirred, I think)

I would like to send a Special Thanks to **LarielAris **and **tsuchikin901** who have review on every chapter so far. Thank you.

**I do not own Kiba :'(**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Prologue to the Battle**

He was sitting up, fingers gently brushing against the soft locks of his bedfellow. The other male was sleeping peacefully at the current moment, no shivers or sobs from some nightmare or another. Those had kept him up all night, but Noa didn't really care. It had just been in the last couple hours that Zed's sleep was peaceful, and he could only hope that whatever demons the white-haired boy was fighting that he had won.

Noa's internal clock told him it was about the time for the sun to come up, though it could no be seen through the rainstorm of Ulbacus. Smiling, he carefully shifted to get out of bed and not disturb his partner, deciding to make breakfast for the sleeping teen before he woke. He hadn't moved more than a couple inches when the door opened slowly and soundlessly, two head peeking in curiously.

"See, I told you they did it, Roia," Robes chuckled, causing Noa to blush. He knew that must very well be what it looked like, what with both of them in bed together, and Noa without a shirt (since the cloth irritated the healing scars on his back). Practically prancing over, Robes flopped down in a chair next to the bed and asked, "So, did Zed go easy on you, or did you go easy on Zed?"

"I-it's not like that," the ravenette stuttered, still embarrassed at being caught in that compromising situation. "We didn't do anything." The blonde's expression clearly said, 'I don't believe you.'

"Robes, don't you think you're jumping to conclusions?" Roia asked, walking over to stand next to the head of the bed, looking down at the content, white-haired male. His hair was messed a bit, but she suspected that was from rolling over in his sleep, not sex.

Robes didn't seem to share her conclusion. He was unable to voice his retort, though, for at that moment the sleeping teen stirred, groaning groggily as he pushed himself up with his arms. He gave the two people by the bed a sideways glance before burying his face in his hands. "Gods, I have a headache," he mumbled.

"Zed?" Roia asked softy, not wanting to hurt her friend's most-likely sensitive ears.

"I can't remember the last time I cried like that," he admitted, mostly to himself. Experience had taught him not to keep things in. In Calm, he only had Noa, who was ill so he didn't want to burden him with his problems. Now, not only was Noa better, but he also had a whole group of friends that could help him, if he let them. The previous night showed him he had to let them, otherwise he would slowly destroy himself. "I'm going to go get some pain medication from the bathroom," he stated, tossing the covers off his lap and revealing, to Robes' dismay, that he was indeed wearing pants.

"Aw. I guess you two didn't do anything last night," the blonde complained, for he had hoped to come here and get something the tease the uptight male about.

"Nothing like that, you perverted old man," Zed said mockingly as he entered the bathroom. Robes just glared at where he disappeared.

Chuckling at the older man's expression, Noa said, "I was about to make breakfast, would you like to join us?"

"I'd like that," Roia spoke up, placing a hand over the Joust Champion's mouth to prevent his obnoxious reply. "And I think Robes would like to as well." Nodding, Noa went into the kitchen, leaving the other two lovebirds alone. "Zed has a headache so try to be polite and keep your voice down a bit," she whisperingly hissed.

"Okay, I'm sorry," Robes said quietly, looking down like a beat puppy.

"She's got you on a short leash, doesn't she, Robes?" Zed chuckled, holding his head as the noise hurt a little. By this time the smells of breakfast were wafting into the room, causing everyone's mouth to water. Zed, who had been gone for three years, was the only one who didn't know just how good of a cook Noa was, but with the smell it was hard to not tell. All it did was remind him of the fact that he had not been here for the last three years. They had both changed, but it seemed only Noa had moved forward, and Zed found himself left behind. Would he ever be able to catch up?

Lagging behind, he was the last to sit down at the table, situated between Roia and Noa. Both looked at him curiously, the somber air around him visible, the latter able to tell he had improved some from the previous night. It would take time, though. And he would be there every step of the way. It was the least he could do.

* * *

"You know, with the last several weeks everyone was so worried about me that you never got the chance to see how the others were doing," came Noa's soft voice from across the table. The only other occupant of the room, Zed, looked up from his half-finished meal. The white-haired savior was moved into the ravenette's room immediately after they came back from Ulbacus over a week ago. Most of the time he stayed cooped up inside, staring out the windows at the vast land below. Noa, of course, left often now that he could actually walk on his own, and Zed couldn't blame him. It would be unfair of him to ask the once-restricted man to remain in that room with him indefinitely.

"Yeah, I haven't, have I?" he replied, sitting his fork down. "I wanted to make sure you were okay, so I stayed in here most of the time. The only times I saw the others was when they came here to see you, or me."

"How about we go out, then?" the newly-invigorated male asked, standing and nearly knocking his chair over. "We can go visit Miki's shop. And I can tell you how the others are doing. Maybe then you can tell us some of your travels." The spirit-boy looked away, almost in shame, causing Noa's smile to fall. Voice solemn, he said, "We can talk about that later, once you're ready."

"Thanks Noa," came Zed's soft reply. "But I don't know if I'll ever be." Standing much slower then his lover, Zed gathered up his plate, scraping the remaining contents into the trash. As with before, whenever anything was mentioned of Zed's time away he closed up completely.

Arms wrapped around his shoulders, a warm chest pressed to his back. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have mentioned it," Noa said, turning Zed's head to the side so he could give the shorter male a chaste kiss. "Come on, cheer up. We're going to go see the others!"

An amused chuckle escaped Zed's mouth. He never could stay depressed around the other male, and practically dropping the dishes in the sink, he turned around in Noa's arms and gave him another kiss. Both smiling, they separated and headed for the door, hands placed at their sides.

Tempura hadn't changed too much I the time he was gone. It was still the land of the free, and a lot of things were seen as acceptable. As such, if they wanted to, Zed and Noa could have acted like a couple in the middle of the street and not many would have cared. They didn't, mostly because of their temperaments. In Calm, such things as homosexuality would be a crime, and while Noa was more outwardly affectionate than Zed, neither cared much for public displays of affection. They didn't need to hold hands while walking down the street, just being close to the other was enough. Roia and Robes, on the other hand, was a completely different story. Despite being together, he would woo her with sweet words and gifts (most of the time flowers) every time he saw her. Noa had informed Zed of how Robes didn't seem to care that Roia was originally from Task, actually, few did, but she still kept the shoulder horns hidden.

"Gitra and Mirette got married a year ago, they have been working on improving relations between Task and the other nations. It is kind of a three way alliance right now, with Task, Tempura, and Neotopia together. Jimoto is being stubborn, and refused to allow peace," Noa was explaining.

"How has Task been fairing?" Zed asked, remembering the problems Gitra had told him about a few years back.

"With our help, they have been proliferating," the ravenette answered. "Task also has a lot of natural resources that have been proven to replenish themselves. They trade those for supplies. They have also been working with Ulbacus to create greenhouses so they can be less dependent on the other nations."

Zed let out a single chuckle, one of those 'I knew it' ones. His companion didn't need to ask, for Zed soon elaborated. "I knew Gitra would make a good leader. Has Mirette remember what happened?" he asked.

"It seems she hasn't," Noa said, opening the door to one of Miki's many bakeries. "Did you know that Miki has a couple of these in Neotopia too?" They walked right up to the counter, peering over it at the male who was no longer a kid leaning into an oven to retrieve the latest batch. He nearly dropped the tray when he turned around.

"Don't scare me like that!" he indignantly growled at Noa. Setting the tray down, it was then he realized there was another guest. "Zed! Didn't expect to see you here. How have you been?"

"I've been fine," the snowy-haired male replied. "A lot on my mind that I've been trying to go through. I hear you have shops over in Neotopia. Congratulations."

A slight blush dusted his cheeks, one hand scratching the back of his head bashfully. "It's not much, really. I had to train some people on how to bake the bread properly. I make the dough here, and send it over to Neotopia using shifting. I got special permission to do that."

"And he calls that not much," Zed joked, laughing. The other two soon joined in. They were still laughing when a soldier suddenly burst in.

"Master Zed, Master Noa, thank goodness you are here. You have been called to the council meeting. You are to head there immediately," he said, panting and out of breath.

"Miki, get this man something to drink. We will be back later," Zed said, grabbing Noa's wrist and dragging him passed the man.

It didn't take them too long to make it to the council chamber, standing on either side Sebastian. Robes was also present. "What do you need?" the ever rude Zed asked, not much caring for the council.

"Noa, how do you feel you have recovered?" the short old lady asked (**A/N: **Sorry, but I don't remember their names…).

"I am back to at least what I was when I worked to Hairam-sama in Neotopia," the ravenette replied.

"Good, because we need your help. All three of you have proven your strength, and I need to ask your help now. Jimoto is on the move. It is headed for Task which is the weakest link in our chain with how dependent it is on our and Neotopia's help. I want you three to lead a group of armed forces there to aid the Taskans. Will you do it?" she asked, her tone basically saying 'you don't have a choice.'

"As Shard Champion I will go," Robes said.

"This has become my home, and I have many friends in Task. I will help," Noa stated.

Zed stood with his hands in his pockets, not liking the situation. If he went he could blow his cover, but if he didn't he couldn't protect Noa. "I'm not doing it for you," he said finally. "But like hell am I letting Jimoto have its way."

"Thank you, all of you. You will shift out tomorrow, be ready."

* * *

Does it even tell you the council members' names? I don't remember...

Anyway, it took me forever to figure out how to start this, but I think I did okay. Also, I deviated slightly from my original idea, where Jimoto was going to attack Tempura, not Task, but for the next chapter Task works better. Because of this, though, it might take me a little longer to figure out how to do Chapter 6. Not too much, just have to make arrangments.

Hope you enjoyed it.


	5. Chapter 5: Revived Wings

I have to say that I really love the beginning of this chapter, and really all of this chapter except the end of the battle. It seems kind of flat to me, but I can't think of any other way of ending it, especially since I really have some suspicions about _what_ Elmeda even is. That fake death in the Neotopian Joust and outlasting Hugh/being a higher pawn than Hugh really made me wonder.

And, because of the long wait I gift you with a 2900 word chapter. Okay, so it just happened to be that long... But I did stay up until 2:30 writing it, though that was because I was on a roll and didn't want to stop.

Next chapter will be the final chapter, and I will try to have it up really soon.

**Edit:** I fixed some gramatical errors in it. Not too surprised at the amount, since I _did_ type it up at two in the morning.

**I do not own Kiba :'(**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Revived Wings**

A small army stood on the field, eagerly awaiting dawn and the last few stragglers. Many shifted nervously, new to the ways of war without the experience from the invasion of Neotopia a little over three years before. Some hadn't been soldiers but a few months, but showed skill enough to match blades with Jimoto warriors. Neotopian aid, since the country had fared rather well since being relinquished to Diana, had already been sent a day before.

Overlooking the several scores of soldiers were four figures, their silence all the conversation they needed while their charges spoke in hushed whispers, trying desperately to ease the uneasy tension in the air. The four leaders had much to think about, though. Robes grimly recalled the time when he had led a small troop into Jimoto, with only Roia and himself surviving the massacre. Would this battle be the same? He had no plans of abandoning Task and Gitra, but how many lives would be cut short by Tempuran, Neotopian, Taskan, and Jimot blade? Noa shamefully went over his lie, not truthfully have recovered as much as he claimed. His strength was returning by the hour, and day, and week, but his road was still plenty in length ahead of him. The ravenette could not shake the feeling something was going to happen because of his fib. Roia, who had been called to the council later that day to be assigned leader of a medical team, fidgeted slightly, not caring much for war. While before she used to desire only strength, feeling a need to prove herself, now she saw the struggle for power in a different light. She had witnessed the deaths of innocents by the spiteful blade of the cruel, small villages destroyed by the power of spirits, and even the demise of Zed's mother in her obsession with the power held in Amil Gaoul. Roia wanted no part in those battles, now, but found great satisfaction in her assigned job; reducing the fatalities.

Then there was Zed, sitting away from the group and staring up at the disappearing crescent of the moon. His thoughts held only dread and fear. As with Roia, Zed did not like the outcome of war, and saw no glory in the killing. This battle was for their survival and the lives of their friends, and it would inevitably come at the lives of their enemies, and some of their allies. Zed feared for the soldiers under him, a few of which were his age or younger. A handful were older, veterans, and reminded the white-haired male of a particular Shard Caster who had lost his life. Zed feared for his friends' lives, for Robes, who could be cocky, and for Roia, who had come to dislike strength. Either one could become a target. Zed fear for his love, for Noa whose company he had only recently been able to fully appreciate. He could tell the other man had lied about his condition.

And Zed feared for himself.

At any point in this battle he might accidentally call on Amil, revealing what he was desperately hiding. He might need to call on his other side, and the troubled savior was unsure if he'd be able to do so. The worst fear he had for himself, though, was that if he was in danger, and had the chance to narrowly avoid it, was that he wouldn't. With his death, Tasker could never be resurrected again, and he feared taking that opportunity, and leaving Noa grieving.

"The elders are approaching," a soft voice came from above him. Looking up into those whiskey eyes was all the confirmation Zed needed; so long as he had those to return to there was no way he would simply let himself die. Taking the offered hand, Zed was on his feet and making his way down the hill by the time the elders reached the troop. Words of luck were exchanged as a way to delay to departure a few moments, allowing the light of the sun to raise high enough to shine on the faces of those gathered. Everyone knew this was the last sunrise some of them would see, and they soaked in the moment.

"Return to us safely," the short old lady said loudly. (**A/N:** I still don't remember their names… XP) A cheer rang through the crowd, several soldiers raising their weapons to point at the sun. Soon the field was filled with blue-green lights, then was left void of all but a few old people and grass.

* * *

A good defense was already being constructed when they arrived, and it raised Zed's hope of a low casualty list. He didn't let this hope get too high, but if they could build a strong enough defense they might be able to win with no battle at all. With reports of Jimoto almost ready to depart that chance was slim, though.

"Is that you, Zed?" a male voice asked. The addressed party turned to see a somewhat familiar face, and he immediately recognized it to be Gitra. The Taskan leader was not planning on holing up in his palace, he planned on fighting alongside his people. "I heard you had returned. I'm glad to see the rumors are true. Having you on our side will greatly help."

"I no longer hold Amil Gaoul," the younger man offered immediately. It wasn't a full lie, but it wasn't the truth either. He no longer _held_ Amil, he _was_ Amil.

"You are a stronger fighter, and well worth the praise even without the spirit," Gitra corrected. "When the other five vanished and could not be found, I guess Amil Gaoul had disappeared as well."

Robes, who had been monitoring the construction for the last few minutes, addressed Gitra at this point. "How has the preparations been going?" he asked, still glancing around at the work.

"It is to be halted at sundown tonight," he answered. "It tires my men, and word tells of Jimoto attacking before dawn tomorrow. They will need their rest."

"If they are this close we need to gather together quickly and discuss a battle plan," Zed cut in, realizing the extreme disadvantage the Tempuran soldiers would hold if they were uninformed.

"And could you direct me to the healers' tent?" Roia asked.

Making a quick gesture in the direction of several erected tents, Gitra led the three combat leaders from Tempura to the command tent. Neotopia's representative leaders were already seated, including Kira. The girl seemed to almost look away from Noa in sorrow. "We are all here now, so we need to come up with a plan of action," Gitra stated.

"We should send out a scout team," one of the (more insignificant) leaders suggested. "Five or ten soldiers to give us forewarning of the enemies' approach."

"More like 'five or ten free bodies'," Zed said, leaning back almost bored-like. "What we need to do is stay right where we are." The first speaker didn't appreciate the interruption, though, and cut into Zed's plan.

"You don't seem to hold enough faith in your soldiers if you think they could so easily be killed," the man shot angrily. "If you don't believe your men can handle the job then I'll send mine."

"It's not that I don't trust them, it's that I know how Jimoto works. A small force like that wouldn't stand a chance against them, and sending a large one would cut our resources," Zed shot back, not liking the man's tone. "The problem with them attacking is that they have to travel. They have to advance, while we just have to hold our ground. If we position our troops responsibly we won't have to worry about forewarning."

"What do you suggest, then?" Zed's opponent growled. In the older man's eyes, this white-haired kid was merely acting taller than his britches, and it didn't settle well with him.

"Archers and a score of swordsmen should be placed behind the constructed barricade. That should be sufficient to hold off an advancing force," Zed began, Robes catching on to the young man's plan.

"Our east side in the most vulnerable, since there is plenty of rocks to use as cover," the blonde continued, receiving an approving nod from the savior. "More men should be placed there. Archers to pick off theirs, mobile towers to allow ours to see over the rocks, and three score should be sufficient."

Noa picked up on the division of forces by this point and jumped in. "Two score placed between the east side and the barricade should also be enough," he added.

"And what of the rest of our men, just to sit around twiddling their thumbs?" the older man from before asked.

"No," Kira stated, having also caught on to her friend's plan. "Half will remain inside the line, ready to rush to whatever front is under attack. The other half will have several areas where they can sneak out after the battle starts, and move to attack from behind. It is probably the best we can do on such short notice."

"And what was that about staying put?" he asked irritatedly.

"That's what they will think we are doing," was all the answer Zed gave.

The next several hours were spent deciding where best to place people, and Zed wasn't too happy with the decision; Gitra would stand guard behind the barricade, a Taskan and Neotopian leader would stay between the east and barricade, the Robes would lead the pincer group once the Jimots attacked, and he, Noa, and Kira would be positioned at the exposed east side. The remaining leaders would dictate troop reinforcements. No matter how hard he tried, Zed couldn't get Noa switched with one of them. That put the still weakened male on the frontline.

* * *

Elmeda chuckled slightly at the defenses she saw before her. She had reports of six score, not including archers, which made up another three, with an undeterminable amount of soldiers positioned behind the lines. She had no doubts her small army could plow right through them and rather than attacking all the entire line she moved to the place they had guarded most heavily. The east end was pretty open, though she did notice that a couple mobile towers were in place to see over the closer rocks.

She chuckled again; this was going to be fun.

The first light had appeared on the horizon when the first shouts of movements issued from above. Zed protectively watch him boyfriend, glad he at least convinced the stubborn man to take the middle position, away from the cliff face. Just one more danger about the east side, the sheer drop-off on one side.

Bowstrings twanged from overhead, accompanied by a few wheezes of pain from Kira's soldiers. More arrows were expertly fitted and released, the troops on the ground only able to hope their cover had accurate aim; they had a limited amount of arrows. All too soon the archers began to descend the ladders, taking up weapons as the field became deathly silent.

A lone cry broke the deafening silence. "For the glory of Jimoto!" Elmeda yelled, perched upon one of the high rocks. The result was a flood of soldiers flowing out, seemingly from the cracks in the rocks. Even as the first clangs of metal-on-metal were heard reinforcements began to join in the battle. One yellow-brown-eyed white-haired male scanned the ensuing chaos for a single form; the woman he recognized all too readily.

To his horror, he found her locked in a fight with Noa, who had managed to maneuver extremely close to the edge. Several unlucky Jimots found themselves between him and his love, and a red blade between them and Zed.

"You don't seem to well," Elmeda cackled, laughing as she called her spirit.

An expression of horror crossed the ravenette's features. Since Sachira vanished Noa had no spirit to use in combat.

A call of "Rambos!" startled the seasoned fighter for a moment.

"What a lovely surprise," she stated, turning to face the oncoming savior. "I did not expect you to be here." Turning back to Noa, she smirked quite evilly at the exhausted male before reiterating, "You don't seem well. Maybe you should rest."

Noa realized his mistake the instant he moved back to avoid her sword. His foot found only air under it, and then that was all under him as he fell. The ravenette heard his name, or maybe it was simply Zed yelling 'no,' but he could do nothing about it. _I'm sorry, Zed,_ he whispered in his head a couple tears forming in his eyes.

As much as Zed desired to run the cackling witch through right there, he knew he did not have the time. It did not even take him a moment to decide, and he was running towards the cliff himself. Her sword might have stopped him, had the lance he held not batted it away first. Letting his eyes slip to blue-green, Robes' first view of the battle scene was his friend and rival diving off a cliff.

Eyes closed against his impending death, Noa didn't believe at first when he felt a pair of arms wrap around his torso. The rush of air slowing intrigued him enough to open his eyes, though. He gasped in surprise at the sight before him. His chin rested easily on Zed's shoulder, a pair of wings as white as the teen's hair beating furiously to stop their rapid descent.

The solid stone of a ledge met their feet, and Noa wobbled for a moment from dizziness as Zed collapsed to his knees, needing to catch his breath. "Zed-" Noa started, but was cut off by an upraised hand.

"Not now," the spirit-boy replied. "Later, once this is over," he promised. Every moment weighed heavily on them, both understanding that they were needed above in the battle. Luckily it only took Zed a few minutes to recover enough. The flight back up wouldn't be as harsh since he didn't have to rapidly reverse the pull of gravity.

There were many shouts of surprise as the two appeared back over the side of the cliff. Robes, while he was currently locked in battle with Elmeda, actually wasn't too surprised that Zed was alive; Rambos was still fighting beside Belladonna, after all. He also, though, wasn't facing the cliff to see the shimmering wings now adorning his friend's back.

Many soldiers, both enemy and ally, moved back as Zed landed several meters from the cliff. A brave few charged him, only to get close and personally with Amil Gaoul's lance, the pointy end.

_Contain your wrath,_ came Amil's voice, offering good advice. Clouded judgment could lead to the injury of friend, and not just foe. _These ones are well taken care of, leave them to Noa and Kira. You need to take out Elmeda, or at least make her flee._

"Ah," Zed replied, not caring that it appeared he was talking to no one at the moment.

A silver streak whizzed by Robes head, the one-eyed Jimot leaping back to avoid the missile. Both held their breath in surprise at the recognition of what it was, since both had seen it in the sky during Zed's fight with Tasker. They got a larger surprise when it vanished completely, only to come crashing down from above and nearly hitting Elmeda again. Her attacker actually appeared this time, the winged savior landing just behind his weapon and casually removing it from its earthly sheath. "Did you miss me?" he asked, not particularly to either of the combatants.

Elmeda threw several attacks at Zed, all resulting in her having to quickly dodge away, and still receiving slight wounds. Facing Zed alone would be hard enough, but by that time the shock had worn off and Robes joined in as well.

Giving a noise of irritation, she shouted out a command neither Tempuran could understand. Tossing down a smoke bomb, Zed promptly blew it away with the wind from his weapon, but it was too late by then. Elmeda had vanished, and in her stead stood several well-armored men.

The battle went downhill from there. Any Jimot who could escaped, and those who couldn't were cut down. Elmeda managed to escape far enough away to shift back to Jimoto. Many lay wounded or dead, but the losses for the three allies wasn't as severe as it could have been. With the initial fear now dissipated, many looked to the now wingless Zed with great respect. By causing Elmeda's retreat he had probably cut the deaths by half, since there would be no more fighting and those wounded could get care faster. Still, the white-haired male could not shake that feeling of dread.

_I fear you are worrying over nothing,_ Amil scolded the teenager as he entered the temporary quarters assigned to him and Noa. _You will see once you tell them._

"Smug bastard," he muttered, flopping down on the bed and burying his face in the pillow. He wanted to get some rest before he explained his situation to the others, but fate wasn't that kind.

The door slowly creaked open and Noa peered into the chamber. "Zed, could you come with me?" he asked politely.

It seemed he would have to tell them now.

* * *

Yay, only one chapter to go. I must say, I am really happy with how this story is going, and this chapter had a **lot** more words than I thought it would. This was one of the chapters I feared I would have to combine XP Well, I think we can tell that it isn't neccessary XD

On a random note, this makes almost 130k words total for all my stories.


	6. Chapter 6: The Wind's Resolve

Well, it is finally the last chapter of this fanfiction! I will again thank everyone who has kept with me throughout this story, and I hope you enjoy the final installment of it. It is shorter than the last chapter, but that can't be helped.

By the way, I still didn't look up the Tempuran Council memebers' names. Why? Because I don't like them.

**I do not own Kiba :'(**

* * *

**Chapter 6: The Wind's Resolve**

Halfway between sleepy and dejected, Zed silently followed his lover, head hung, though it couldn't be told which emotion it was caused by. Glancing back, all the ravenette wanted was to tell Zed to go back and lie down. He knew, though, that one of the others would only go and disturb him if he did. Also, guiltily, a part of him was extremely curious about what had happened to the other male and didn't want to wait.

Stopping before the door where everyone was gathered, Noa gave his white-haired boyfriend all the comfort he could, leaning down to hug him and give him a soft kiss, of which Zed responded to neither. "It'll be okay," he whispered in the white-haired man's ear before letting go and walking to the door. Feeling slightly like he was betraying his love, Noa opened it.

Several eyes turned to them, a couple following Noa as he moved to sit down, but many staying locked on Zed. "You don't look too good," Roia said to him, then turned to the others gathered (which consisted of Robes, Gitra, Mirette, Kira, Diana, and the fat council-woman from Tempura). "Maybe it would be best if we waited until he rests."

"Nonsense," the Tempuran elder said strictly. "He is perfectly fine. And we need to know what we might have hiding in our country. You understand, don't you, Zed?"

Sighing, the standing male lifted his head t take in the group, eyes blue-green with lighter marks resembling the hours on a clock around the outside of the iris (**A/N:** Something I really liked about them). "You need to know if I'm a threat or not," he stated. "And I can tell you right now that I am."

"With how keenly you hid it, I figured as much," she said.

"Zed isn't dangerous!" Noa shouted and stood, cutting off any other words was going to say. "He saved me, and everyone here!"

"Noa," the white-haired savior began, fresh pain invading his heart. "Please stop, and sit down. I guess I will start at the beginning.

"You could say it started when I fused with Tasker. It wasn't something I think anyone thought possible, a human and spirit becoming one. I was still me inside that monster, but Tasker had affected me to a great extent. My dreams became distorted and twisted, and I forgot _why_ I had sought out power in the first place. Because of my stupidity Jiko lost his life. That, though, led me to be able to break free of Tasker with Amil Gaoul. Everyone knows this. I have heard it spread from child to child in Tempura, and I doubt it is only there. The next part is where our stories differ.

"I attacked Amil Gaoul. Not entirely sure what I was hoping for, maybe to destroy him so Tasker could never be created again. Maybe I was hoping he'd fight back to get rid of me. That is not the point. He opened a portal for us, and we left.

"You see, though, I didn't leave with Amil Gaoul like you'd think. When I leapt into that portal, I became Amil Gaoul." He paused at this point, calling his shimmering white wings. "For the passed three years I have flown between worlds, which there are quite a few of, avoiding this place. My power is not as great as Amil's had been, my human shell unable to release as much energy as his had, but it is still a tremendous force.

"And so long as I am Amil Gaoul Tasker can not be resurrected by anyone else."

"So what you're saying is that you have the strength of the most powerful spirit, well, beside Tasker, in your body," the lady from Tempura asked. Several others looked at Zed in shock, with Diana almost shaking with fear. Something in her eyes told Zed that she understood the true danger. "I certainly wouldn't want you as an enemy. And you can control this power?"

"Indefinitely," Zed replied, turning his gaze from Diana to Noa, who looked fearful for another reason.

"Then I do not see the problem here," she said irritatedly. "If there is no chance of an uncontrolled outburst then where is the danger, other than you have this strength in you?"

"You noticed it, didn't you, Diana?" Zed asked, chuckling slightly and looking away from his partner. It was irrational, but it hurt to see fear directed at him like that. "If you will recall, _Council-woman_, I said Tasker cannot be resurrected 'by anyone else'," he stated, sarcastically emphasizing her title (**A/N:** I never liked her, or the Neotopian guy.) "Because Amil Gaoul is no longer a spirit he can no longer be collected. But so long as I am alive he still exists. That means, the six key spirits _can_ be gathered inside me once again. If that happens, I am afraid that I will be rendered unable to break free, since I would make up a part of his body as Amil."

There was silence again, Diana actually shaking now and looking down, as if trying to block out the information he just received.

"So long as I am here, this world is in dan-" Noa cut him off.

"The other five spirits have yet to be located," he interrupted. "It isn't even determined if they are still here. Besides, if they do show up, I will make sure Sachira stays with me this time."

"Still, the danger you mentioned is very real," the Tempuran tried to start, but was interrupted just like Zed had been.

"And if for some reason Tempura doesn't allow you residence, I will welcome you here," Gitra said. "It is the least I owe you, for saving my people not once, but twice now."

"And you will be welcome in Neotopia," Diana said. "As with Gitra, you saved my people. But also, if you remain in one of our allied nations we can keep a better eye on you. I also cannot deny that I have come to think of you as a friend."

The Tempuran council-woman ground her teeth in obvious irritation, but found herself not in a position to choose. The two leaders of her allied nations had decided, and her refusal could weaken their position. "Zed wound up in Tempura when he first came to this world. That was his first home here, and it shall remain a home for him. It is his choice where to stay."

There were a few other details to work out, and Roia tried to worm some stories out of her friend. It seemed like the teen didn't want anything to do with them, though, and by the time he sat down it was almost too much to lean on Noa's shoulder to doze off. Finishing details and preparations incase Jimoto was attacked again had to be worked out, and it was half-way through those discussions that Noa spoke up. "Zed really needs to get some rest. I think I'll take him to our room"

"Get some sleep as well, Noa," Roia piped in. "We'll inform you about what went on tomorrow."

Nodding thankfully, the ravenette stood, lifting his stirring boyfriend into his arms and leaving through the door Robes opened for him.

"I can walk on my own," Zed stated when they were halfway to their room, and Noa didn't argue. When they made it back, Zed walked in first, looking around the small space at the few things that were there. As in Ulbacus, he wouldn't have much to pack.

"Are you thinking of leaving again?" the ravenette asked from the door. No answer was just as good as one, and he quickly traversed the room to sling his arms around Zed's neck. "Why do you think you need to do this every time?"

The hurt in Noa's voice stung the white-haired male's ears, and he closed his eyes defiantly against the tears threatening to form. Just what he needed, to cry again. "Look, I'm a danger to everyone here. And come on, Noa, are you really okay with staying with me?" he asked, releasing himself from those arms and turning to face his lover. "Are you really fine with being with someone not entirely human?"

Almost chuckling at Zed's weak defenses, Noa said, "I think I told you before, but all that matters in that you're alive."

"Then why did you look so fearful before?" he asked, yellow eyes locked with Noa's whiskey ones.

"Because I had the feeling you were going to leave, that you planned on vanishing and I wouldn't be able to follow you," Noa informed, closing the small gap between them and pulling Zed into a firm hug. "For the longest time you have protected me from the world, and then you protected the world from me," he started, resting his head in Zed's snowy locks and breathing in the scent. Most of it was from the battle; soil and blood. "For once, let me protect you. If any of those key spirits show up again, I will keep them away from you, that I promise."

Somewhere in his head, Zed heard an annoying, _I told you so_, from Amil. Oh, if only he could hit the damn thing.

They stood there like that for another moment before Noa felt Zed nod slightly. Smiling, he led them to the bed, where they both collapsed and almost instantly fell asleep, Noa for once shielding Zed from the world.

* * *

It felt too early to get up, and the white-haired male tried to bury himself farther into the sheets. His internal clock annoyingly rang, though, and pushed sleep farther from his mind. Normally, Zed would greet the dawn, but the last few days had left him exhausted, and all he wanted to do was sleep until dinner.

"Still in bed?" a soft, melodic voice asked. "Come on, get up. We're going back to Tempura today."

Grumbling, the sleepy teenager lazily kicked the sheets away, rolling over to look up into Noa's intoxicating eyes. The ravenette was already dressed, and their things were packed, and he was holding a large tray. Sitting next to the other man, Noa placed the tray, with it's contents of breakfast and a small box, between them.

"I figured you'd be hungry, so I made something to eat," Noa smiled, his stomach growling at the perfect time to reveal he wasn't only thinking of Zed. "Okay, maybe I was hungry myself as well."

"It's okay, Noa. And thank you," Zed replied, taking a large bite out of a piece of toast.

"Here," Noa started after a couple moments, lifting the box off the tray and handing it to his partner. "Happy birthday."

Zed stopped mid-chew and stared at the gift. Swallowing with some difficulty, he gingerly took the box from Noa's hand and placed it in his lap. Opening it, his visage softened and he lifted the item from its container. It was slightly different than the first one, but he recognized it all the same. This one had been Noa's, he had seen it during the Neotopian Joust, but didn't realize the ravenette had still kept it, the twin feathers so like the one Noa had given him four years ago exactly, on his last birthday in Calm.

"I destroyed yours, right? Back when I wasn't thinking clearly," Noa stated. "So, I'm giving you mine. That also serves a different purpose, if you will. Think of it as a promise. I will never leave you, for I am giving you my freedom. I may fly, but I will always return to you, okay?"

Smiling and letting out a small chuckle, Zed gripped the present tightly to his heart. Leaning across the tray, he brought his mouth to meet his lovers in a passionate kiss.

"Noa. Thank you."

* * *

It doesn't really clear-cut tell you (at least I don't think it did...) but Zed did decide to not leave. That is The Wind's Resolve.


End file.
